A Lake in Northern Iran

Iran is mainly a semi-arid country where some parts of it has got more water than others. Bodies of water are scattered in different parts of it although the north and south of Iran has got the largest of them all. I should explain each part of Iran separately so that you get a better idea about it.

Persian Gulf

With an area of 232,850km, Persian Gulf is situated at the south of Iran. It is almost 900km long from the Strait of Hormoz to Arvand Rud, the border river between Iran and Iraq.

The countries all around the Persian Gulf, except for Iran at its north and east, are Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

The Persian Gulf is one of the warmest bodies of water in the entire Middle East. During summer, the temperature of the water in this gulf amounts to 65 C.

Storms rarely happen there. During winter, the salt rate gets to 48/1000 that is relatively high. Rocky or coral areas suitable for pearls lie at the bottom of the Persian Gulf. At the continental shelf and deep in the Persian Gulf, there have been deposited huge quantities of oil and gas.

There are several Iranian Islands in the Persian Gulf. The most famous of them all are: Hormoz, Khark, Qeshm, Kish, Tonb-e- Kuchak, Tonb-e-Bozorg and Abumusa.

Oman Sea

Oman Sea, situated at the south of Iran, connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean. With an approximate area of 903,000 km, the Oman Sea is surrounded by Iran and Pakistan at the north, Deccan peninsula at the east and Arabia peninsula at the west.

Iran has got small ports at its shorelines with the Oman Sea like Chabahar, Gavater and Jask.

Since antiquity, the Strait of Hormoz and the Oman Sea have always been strategic waterways. Today, tens of gigantic oil tankers carry oil everyday from the countries in the region through this route to different parts of the world.

Caspian Sea

With an area of approximately 371,000km, Caspian Sea in the largest body of inland water all over the world, which is situated at the north of Iran.

Its neighboring countries are Iran at the South, Turkmenistan at the SE, Kazakhstan at the NE and north, Russia at the NW and Azerbaijan at the SW.

The Iranian shorelines are approximately 992km from the East to the West. The average level of of the Caspian Sea is 28m below sea level. There are geographic areas born at the Iranian shorelines because of the changes in the level of the sea, like Miankaleh Peninsula, Ashuradeh IslandHossein Qolly Bay, Gorgan Bay and Anzaly Bay.

The Lakes of Iran

There are permanent and temporary lakes in Iran depending on the amount of water in them in different seasons.

Uromiyeh Lake Located at the NW of Iran, Uromiyeh Lake has got an approximate area of 60,000km. There are slimy ground created at around the deltas of this permanent lake attracting many people each summer because of its ooze and related therapeutic qualities. The salt rate of this lake is very high (3/5 of the Dead Sea) and has got %23 minerals. So, no fish or animal could live there.

Zaribar Lake. Located at the West of Iran, Zaribar Lake is a permanent lake with various kinds of fish in it and lots of birds living around it. Water evaporation has helped the environs of the lake grow green.

Qom Lake . Occupying an approximate area of 2,400km, Qom Lake is a seasonal lake located at the south of Tehran. The area and shape of the lake are varied due to the water running into it from salty rivers and rainfall.

Neyriz Lake. It is a seasonal shallow lake in Fars province located at the NW of a town called Neyriz. It is connected, at its north, to another temporary lake called “Tashk Lake”. Both of them contain very salty water.

Hamun Lake. When it is filled with water, Hamun Lake has got an area of approximately 3,200km at SE of Iran, Sistan and Baluchestan province. The only river emptying into this seasonal lake is called Hirmand.

Maharlu Lake. This seasonal lake is situated near Shiraz, at its SE. Salt is exploited in a factory at its shore to be used in industries, as the water is very much salty.

Parishan Lake. This fresh water lake called Parishan is located at the SW of Shiraz in Karun Plain. Fish is farmed there as well.

Shur Gel Lake. This temporary lake is located at the north of Arak, Markazy province. From time to time, it gets dried or filled depending on the variable amount of annual rainfall.

Other Minor Lakes

There are also some other smaller lakes scattered all across Iran. Some of them are in high altitudes. Those are the small bodies of water refered to as lakes by local people.

“Valasht” near Kelardasht in the Caspian region, Sabalan at the top of Mount Sabalan are few such examples.

Written by: Rahman Mehraby